1. Field of the Invention
This disclosure relates to dentistry, and more particularly to tools and techniques for marking margins on three-dimensional digital models of dentition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recent advances in dental technology have made it possible to capture highly accurate digital dental impressions. Current scanning techniques conceptually provide sufficient resolution to directly prepare physical models for a variety of dental restorations such as bridges, crowns, and the like, as well as dental appliances, dental prostheses, and so forth. However, intra-oral scanning presents numerous physical obstacles to obtaining accurate three-dimensional data around important areas such as the margin of a prepared tooth surface. This includes collapse of the tissue wall around the prepared tooth, as well as blood, saliva, and the like that may accumulate and obscure portions of the margin. In such situations, ambiguities in the resulting three-dimensional scan cannot be readily identified or resolved based solely upon the resulting three-dimensional model.
A need exists for improved techniques to process digital dental models. For example, a need exists for improved margin marking tools to assist with digitally preparing dental restorations.